Juvenile Stakes Winners Return for Calder Oaks

White Hall Lane Farm’s Citizen Advocate, Jacks or Better Farm, Inc.’s Awesome Belle, and Stride Rite Stable, Inc.’s Frolic’s Revenge, all 2-year-old stakes winners at Calder Casino & Race Course in 2011, will each seek the first win of their respective sophomore seasons when starting amongst a full field of 12 in the 21st running of the $100,000 Calder Oaks, to be contested over 1 1/16 miles of turf on Saturday.

Claimed for $40,000 out of her second career start last summer, Citizen Advocate immediately returned rich rewards for her new connections, breaking her maiden over the Calder main track in her first appearance for the team before coming right back to win the $75,000 Catcharisingstar while sprinting five furlongs on grass.

The daughter of Proud Citizen was subsequently shipped to Presque Isle Downs where she was a 1 ¼-length winner of the Presque Isle Debutante while touring that track’s Tapeta surface. The filly then journeyed to Louisiana for the $150,000 My Trusty Cat at Delta Downs, a main track race captured in front-running fashion to complete a unique three-race stakes sweep over turf, synthetic, and dirt surfaces.

In her two starts as a 3-year-old, Citizen Advocate has crossed the wire third in the $75,000 Allen LaCombe Memorial on turf at Fair Grounds before returning as the runner-up in the $75,000 Sophomore Fillies on dirt at Tampa Bay Downs.

Trained by Dave Vivian, and scheduled to be ridden for the first time by Eduardo Nunez, Citizen Advocate starts from post nine in the Calder Oaks.

After failing in two main track allowance tests at Gulfstream this year, Awesome Belle, the homebred heroine of last year’s $300,000 My Dear Girl Division of the Florida Stallion Stakes, will try turf for the second time in her career when starting from post seven in Saturday’s Calder Oaks.

Trained by Stanley Gold, the daughter of Awesome of Course made her lone grassy appearance in the $100,000 Sweetest Chant at Gulfstream Park in mid-January where she finished a tired eighth after contesting a rather robust early pace.

Luis Jurado, who was the pilot for Awesome Belle’s winning run in last year’s Stallion Stakes, returns to the saddle after a four-race absence aboard the filly.

Frolic’s Revenge, winner of the 2011 Lindsay Frolic on Calder’s main track, enters the Calder Oaks off successive starts in graded stakes at Gulfstream where she finished seventh in both the Grade 2 Davona Dale at seven furlongs on the main track and the Grade 3 Herecomesthebride over 1 1/16 miles of turf.

Prior to those two somewhat substandard showings, the daughter of Vindication prevailed in the $60,000 Ginger Brew before coming back with a solid third-place effort in the Sweetest Chant.

Trained by Milt Wolfson, winner of the 2010 Calder Oaks with Trip for A. J., Frolic’s Revenge will be ridden from post two by Chris Landeros, who finished second aboard Big Screen in this year’s Calder Derby.

An intriguing non stakes-winning starter in the Calder Oaks field is Michael Sucher’s lightly-raced filly Miss Montreal, who will navigate the 1 1/16-mile trip from post 12 for recent Calder Derby winning trainer David Braddy.

A daughter of Orientate, Miss Montreal finished second on the Gulfstream dirt in her February 9 career debut before returning to post consecutive turf triumphs, most recently defeating entry-level allowance rivals by three-quarters of a length.

Two-time leading Calder Meet rider Luis Saez has been given the riding assignment aboard Miss Montreal.

Other Calder Oaks entrants of note include Tracy Pinchin’s Sinister Brew, winner of the 2011 John Franks Juvenile Fillies Turf at Calder; Bruce Mendel’s Ainsley, a recent Calder turf allowance winner that is unbeaten in two starts since being claimed for $12,500 in early February; and Maxxam Alliance, LLC, JRR and PRR Group, LLC, and Fawkes Racing, Inc.'s Glamour N Glory, who broke her maiden by six lengths over the Calder turf last year.

Rosa Stephany Taveras' Miss Quisqueya and Off The Hook, LLC and Doble Jak Investment, LLC's Ciguaraya are listed on the also-eligible list for the race.

The $100,000 Calder Oaks will go as the 11th race on a 12-race Saturday program with an approximate post time of 5:34 p.m. First race post-time is 12:55 p.m.

The Saturday program from Calder will also feature the second leg of the recently unveiled Calder Starter Series, a four-race series for horses that have started for $20,000 or less in 2011-12, with each race offering a $50,000 purse.

A field of 12, with four also-eligible horses, has made the overnight for Saturday’s one-mile turf event, which goes as the ninth on the card. Homeboykris, the series’ first-leg winner, is entered main track only for the race.

The Calder Starter Series continues at one mile and 70 yards on Saturday, May 12.

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Catcharisingstar winner Citizen Advocate looks for her first 3-year-old win in this Saturday's $100,000 Calder Oaks.